The future role of natural gas within the global energy mix was one of the main unknowns that transpired from BP’s Energy Outlook report for 2023.

“The broad direction of travel is clear: oil and coal are down. The prospect for natural gas is much less clear,” BP chief economist Spencer Dale said during a webcast on Monday.

BP’s report estimates the evolution of energy supply and demand based on three scenarios considered — New Momentum, based on a continuation of the existing trend — plus Accelerated and Net Zero, where assessments are based on graded scenarios of faster transitions away from fossil fuels.